For the members of the band Bush League, the music has always been personal.
It’s built on friendship, hometown roots and jam sessions that feel more like conversations.
Over the three years since they formed in 2022, Bush League has taken its blend of psychedelic rock, funk, soul and indie to small clubs mostly in Tucson and Southern Arizona. They’ve had shows in Flagstaff, Colorado and New Mexico, but on Nov 15-16, they will play their biggest show ever when they take the stage at Tucson’s Dusk Music Festival at downtown Tucson’s Jácome Plaza, 101 N. Stone Ave.
“I feel like it’s super easy to play with these guys because I’ve known them and being from the same hometown, all the Flagstaff people tend to stick together, especially down in Tucson, but, yeah, it’s really comfortable,” said bass player Laim Cashmore.
“It kind of feels like we’re in the living room together, even when we are on a main stage,” drummer Karson Trainor added.
“We just end up having a musical conversation,” Jackson Ells, saxophone and keyboard player, chimed in as he laughed into his beer on a recent afternoon at Borderlands Sam Hughes.
The group all ended up in Tucson after high school and rekindled their friendship with music.
They named themselves Bush League, a nod to amateur baseball that is both self-deprecating and sincere.
“I feel like it’s something that a lot of people connect with. People are like, ‘Oh, I play bush league baseball’,” Trainor said. “It’s kind of just something that’s like even if you might be subpar at it if you are passionate about it, that’s all that matters.”
Because of their level of comfortability with one another, the band is able to improvise most of their shows, defined by a raw, natural energy and in-the-moment spirit.
Setlists are often impromptu, with grooves shifting in response to the crowd’s energy.
“Sometimes it’s awesome and amazing and puts a smile on your face, and other times, you’re just like shaking your head thinking ‘this is failing epically’ But that’s like the beauty of it,” said lead guitarist Dylan Walker.
“Improvisational music is not unlike life; some parts are super rough, but some parts are really good.” Ells added.
Their use of improv is something that they believe makes them stand out.
“I love Sabrina Carpenter. I haven’t seen her live, but I’m pretty sure that she plays the same show every night, so you probably wouldn’t go and chase her down, yeah?” Ells said. “But then, for jam band shows, you can see the same band four nights in a row and not see the same song twice.”
“I don’t know another band quite like us,” said guitarist Canyon Willis-Green.
The band hopes to get people’s attention by incorporating live music into Dusk’s DJ heavy lineup.
“I like adding to the aspect of live music to like a DJ set, because I love DJ music and they do a great job,” Cashmore said. “But I also think it’s cool to see people actually creating music.”
After Dusk, the band will headline Flagstaff’s iconic Orpheum Theater Nov. 22, a major hometown milestone.
Arizona Sonoran News is a news service of the University of Arizona School of Journalism.
